Substrate Processing Apparatus

ABSTRACT

Described herein is a technique capable of capable of uniformly processing a surface of a substrate even when an inductive coupling type substrate processing apparatus is used. According to one aspect of the technique, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus including: a process chamber in which a substrate is processed; a gas supply part configured to supply a gas into the process chamber; a high frequency power supply part configured to supply a high frequency power; a plasma generator including a resonance coil wound on a side of the process chamber, the plasma generator configured to generate a plasma in the process chamber when the high frequency power is supplied to the resonance coil; and a substrate support on which the substrate is placed such that a horizontal center position of the substrate in the process chamber does not overlap with a horizontal center position of the resonance coil.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This non-provisional U.S. patent application is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 16/874,312 filed on May 14, 2020 and claimspriority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a)-(d) to Japanese Patent Application No.2019-093639, filed on May 17, 2019, the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing apparatus.

BACKGROUND

In order to process a semiconductor substrate (also simply referred toas a “substrate”), the substrate may be processed by supplying a gas ina plasma state onto the substrate. As a method of generating a plasma, acapacitive coupling method using parallel plate electrodes and aninductive coupling method using a resonance coil may be used. Forexample, the resonance coil is provided around a plasma generationchamber, and the plasma is generated in the plasma generation chamber bysupplying electric power to the resonance coil. According to relatedarts, a substrate processing apparatus using the inductive couplingmethod (hereinafter, also referred to as an “inductive coupling typesubstrate processing apparatus”) is disclosed.

However, according to the inductive coupling type substrate processingapparatus, a plasma density may not be uniformized in the plasmageneration chamber due to a positional relationship between theresonance coil and the plasma generation chamber. Therefore, a substrateprocessing on a surface of the substrate may not be uniformized.

SUMMARY

Described herein is a technique capable of uniformly processing asurface of a substrate even when an inductive coupling type substrateprocessing apparatus is used to process the substrate.

According to one aspect of the technique of the present disclosure,there is provided a substrate processing apparatus including: a processchamber in which a substrate is processed; a gas supply part configuredto supply a gas into the process chamber; a high frequency power supplypart configured to supply a high frequency power of a predeterminedfrequency; a plasma generator including a resonance coil wound on a sideof the process chamber, the plasma generator configured to generate aplasma in the process chamber when the high frequency power is suppliedto the resonance coil; and a substrate support on which the substrate isplaced such that a horizontal center position of the substrate in theprocess chamber does not overlap with a horizontal center position ofthe resonance coil.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a vertical cross-section of a substrateprocessing apparatus according to one or more embodiments describedherein.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a gas supply part of the substrateprocessing apparatus according to the embodiments described herein.

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a principle of generating a plasma inthe substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates an influence of the plasma generated bythe substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a relationship between a substrate andthe plasma generated by the substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration ofa controller and related components of the substrate processingapparatus.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a substrate processingaccording to the embodiments described herein.

FIG. 8 schematically illustrates operation states of components of thesubstrate processing apparatus when the substrate processing isperformed.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates an example of the substrate with agroove (also referred to as a “trench”) formed thereon to be processedaccording to the substrate processing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, one or more embodiments (also simply referred to as“embodiments”) according to the technique of the present disclosure willbe described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Configuration of Substrate Processing Apparatus

Hereinafter, a substrate processing apparatus according to theembodiments will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 6 . Forexample, the substrate processing apparatus according to the embodimentsis configured to perform a substrate processing such as an oxidationprocess onto a film formed on a surface of a substrate.

Process Chamber

A substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a process furnace 202 inwhich a substrate 200 is processed by a plasma. The process furnace 202includes a process vessel 203. A process chamber 201 is defined by theprocess vessel 203. The process vessel 203 includes a dome-shaped uppervessel 210 serving as a first vessel and a bowl-shaped lower vessel 211serving as a second vessel. By covering the lower vessel 211 with theupper vessel 210, the process chamber 201 is defined. For example, theupper vessel 210 is made of a nonmetallic material such as aluminumoxide (Al2O3) and quartz (SiO2), and the lower vessel 211 is made of amaterial such as aluminum (Al).

A gate valve 244 is provided on a lower side wall of the lower vessel211. While the gate valve 244 is open, the substrate 200 can betransferred (loaded) into the process chamber 201 through a substrateloading/unloading port 245 using a substrate transfer mechanism (notshown) or be transferred (unloaded) out of the process chamber 201through the substrate loading/unloading port 245 using the substratetransfer mechanism. While the gate valve 244 is closed, the gate valve244 maintains the process chamber 201 airtight.

A resonance coil 212 is wound on a side of the process chamber 201. Inthe process chamber 201, a space adjacent to the resonance coil 212 isreferred to as a “plasma generation space 201 a”, and a space thatcommunicates with the plasma generation space 201 a and in which thesubstrate 200 is processed is referred to as a “substrate processingspace 201 b”. Specifically, the plasma generation space 201 a refers toa space where the plasma is generated, for example, a space above alower end of the resonance coil 212 and below an upper end of theresonance coil 212 in the process chamber 201. The substrate processingspace 201 b refers to a space in which the substrate 200 is processed bythe plasma, for example, a space below the lower end of the resonancecoil 212. According to the embodiments, a diameter of the plasmageneration space 201 a in a horizontal direction is substantially thesame as that of the substrate processing space 201 b in the horizontaldirection.

Substrate Support

A substrate support 217 serving as a substrate support part is providedat a center of a bottom portion of the process chamber 201. Thesubstrate 200 can be placed on the substrate support 217. For example,the substrate support 217 is made of a nonmetallic material such asaluminum nitride (AlN), ceramics and quartz. The substrate support 217is configured to reduce a metal contamination on a structure such as afilm formed on the substrate 200. The substrate support 217 is alsoreferred to as a “substrate supporter”.

A heater 217 b serving as a heating mechanism and an impedanceadjustment electrode 217 c are embedded in the substrate support 217.When electric power is supplied to the heater 217 b, the heater 217 b isconfigured to heat the substrate 200 such that a surface temperature ofthe substrate 200 may range, for example, from about 25° C. to about850° C. The substrate support 217 is electrically insulated from thelower vessel 211.

The impedance adjustment electrode 217 c is connected to an impedancevariable mechanism (not shown). The impedance variable mechanism isconstituted by components such as a resonance coil (not shown) and avariable capacitor (not shown). The impedance variable mechanism isconfigured to change an impedance thereof from about 0 Ω to a parasiticimpedance value of the process chamber 201 by controlling the inductanceand resistance of the resonance coil (not shown) and the capacitancevalue of the variable capacitor (not shown). Therefore, it is possibleto control the potential (bias voltage) of the substrate 200 via theimpedance adjustment electrode 217 c and the substrate support 217.

According to the embodiments, as described later, it is possible toimprove a uniformity of a density of the plasma generated on thesubstrate 200. Therefore, when the uniformity of the density of theplasma falls within a desired range, it is not necessary to control thebias voltage of the substrate 200 using the impedance adjustmentelectrode 217 c. In such a case, the impedance adjustment electrode 217c may not be provided in the substrate support 217. However, for thepurpose of further improving the uniformity, it is possible to controlthe bias voltage of the substrate 200 using the impedance adjustmentelectrode 217 c even when the uniformity falls within the desired range.

A shaft 261 configured to support a horizontal center of the substratesupport 217 is connected to the substrate support 217. A lower portionof the shaft 261 protrudes outside the process chamber 201 via athrough-hole 219 of a circular shape provided at a bottom portion of thelower vessel 211. A rotating mechanism 262 configured to rotate theshaft 261 is provided at a lower end of the shaft 261. By rotating theshaft 261 by the rotating mechanism 262, the substrate support 217 isrotated (that is, a spinning movement of the substrate support 217 isperformed).

The rotating mechanism 262 is supported by a revolving mechanism 263.The revolving mechanism 263 is configured to drive the shaft 261 torevolve around a specific axis in the process chamber 201. By drivingthe shaft 261 to revolve around the specific axis by the revolvingmechanism 263, the substrate support 217 revolves around the specificaxis. According to the embodiments, the revolving mechanism 263 issupported by a support portion 264. The rotating mechanism 262 and therevolving mechanism 263 may be collectively referred to as a “rotatingpart” or a “rotating apparatus”.

The support portion 264 is connected to a shaft 266 via an elevatingmechanism 265. For example, the shaft 266 is fixed to the lower vessel211. By controlling the elevating mechanism 265 to elevate or lower thesupport portion 264, the substrate support 217 is elevated or lowered.The elevating mechanism 265 and the shaft 266 may be collectivelyreferred to as an “elevating part” or an “elevating apparatus”.

A substrate placing surface 217 a of a circumferential shape is providedon a surface of the substrate support 217. A central axis of thesubstrate placing surface 217 a is configured to coincide with a centralaxis of the shaft 261. A diameter of the substrate placing surface 217 ais set slightly larger than a diameter of the substrate 200. When thesubstrate 200 is placed on the substrate support 217, a center of thesubstrate placing surface 217 a overlaps a center of the substrate 200.

A diameter of the through-hole 219 is set so that the shaft 261 does notcontact with the through-hole 219 when the shaft 261 revolves around thespecific axis. A bellows (not shown) is provided so as to surroundcomponents such as the shaft 261. The bellows is configured to maintaina vacuum degree of the process chamber 201.

Gas Supply Part

A gas supply pipe 232 is connected above the process chamber 201 (thatis, on an upper portion of the upper vessel 210) so as to communicatewith a gas introduction port (also referred to as a “gas inlet”) 234. Ashield plate 240 of a disk shape is provided below the gas introductionport 234. A gas supplied through the gas supply pipe 232 is supplied tothe plasma generation space 201 a via the gas introduction port 234.When the gas is supplied to the plasma generation space 201 a, the gascollides with the shield plate 240 and is diffused toward the resonancecoil 212.

As shown in FIG. 2 , a downstream end of an oxygen-containing gas supplypipe 232 a configured to supply an oxygen (O2) gas serving as anoxygen-containing gas, a downstream end of an hydrogen-containing gassupply pipe 232 b configured to supply an hydrogen (H2) gas serving as ahydrogen-containing gas, and a downstream end of an inert gas supplypipe 232 c configured to supply an argon (Ar) gas serving as an inertgas is connected to join the gas supply pipe 232.

An oxygen (O2) gas supply source 250 a, a mass flow controller (MFC) 252a serving as a flow rate controller (flow rate control mechanism) and avalve 253 a serving as an opening/closing valve are provided at theoxygen-containing gas supply pipe 232 a in order from an upstream sideto a downstream side of the oxygen-containing gas supply pipe 232 a. Anoxygen-containing gas supply part (also referred to as an“oxygen-containing gas supply system”) is constituted by theoxygen-containing gas supply pipe 232 a, the MFC 252 a and the valve 253a. The oxygen-containing gas supply part may also be referred to as a“first process gas supply part” or a “first process gas supply system”.

A hydrogen (H2) gas supply source 250 b, a mass flow controller (MFC)252 b and a valve 253 b are provided at the hydrogen-containing gassupply pipe 232 b in order from an upstream side to a downstream side ofthe hydrogen-containing gas supply pipe 232 b. A hydrogen-containing gassupply part (also referred to as a “hydrogen-containing gas supplysystem”) is constituted by the hydrogen-containing gas supply pipe 232b, the MFC 252 b and the valve 253 b. The hydrogen-containing gas supplypart may also be referred to as a “second process gas supply part” or a“second process gas supply system”.

An argon (Ar) gas supply source 250 c, a mass flow controller (MFC) 252c and a valve 253 c are provided at the inert gas supply pipe 232 c inorder from an upstream side to a downstream side of the inert gas supplypipe 232 c. An inert gas supply part (also referred to as an “inert gassupply system”) is constituted by the inert gas supply pipe 232 c, theMFC 252 c and the valve 253 c.

A valve 254 is provided on a downstream side portion where theoxygen-containing gas supply pipe 232 a, the hydrogen-containing gassupply pipe 232 b and the inert gas supply pipe 232 c join. Each of theoxygen-containing gas supply pipe 232 a, the hydrogen-containing gassupply pipe 232 b and the inert gas supply pipe 232 c is configured tocommunicate with the gas introduction port 234. It is possible to supplyprocess gases such as the oxygen-containing gas, the hydrogen-containinggas and the inert gas into the process chamber 201 via the gas supplypipes 232 a, 232 b and 232 c by opening and closing the valves 253 a,253 b, 253 c and 254 while adjusting the flow rates of the respectivegases by the MFCs 252 a, 252 b and 252 c.

A gas supply part (also referred to as a “gas supply system”) 255 isconstituted by the first process gas supply part, the second process gassupply part and the inert gas supply part. According to the embodiments,since the oxygen gas, the hydrogen gas and the inert gas are used, thegas supply part 255 is constituted by the first process gas supply part,the second process gas supply part and the inert gas supply part.However, the gas supply part 255 according to the embodiments is notlimited thereto. For example, one of the first process gas supply part,the second process gas supply part and the inert gas supply part or acombination thereof may be individually or collectively referred to asthe gas supply part 255.

The substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the embodiments isconfigured to perform the oxidation process by supplying the O2 gasserving as the oxygen-containing gas through the oxygen-containing gassupply system. However, a nitrogen-containing gas supply system (alsoreferred to as a “nitrogen-containing gas supply part”) configured tosupply a nitrogen-containing gas into the process chamber 201 may beprovided instead of the oxygen-containing gas supply system. Accordingto the substrate processing apparatus configured as described above(that is, the nitrogen-containing gas supply system is provided insteadof the oxygen-containing gas supply system), a nitridation process maybe performed instead of the oxidation process onto the substrate 200. Insuch a case, for example, a nitrogen (N2) gas supply source (not shown)serving as a nitrogen-containing gas supply source is provided insteadof the oxygen (O2) gas supply source 250 a, and the oxygen-containinggas supply pipe 232 a may serve as a nitrogen-containing gas supplypipe.

Exhaust Part

A gas exhaust port 235 is provided on a side wall of the lower vessel211. The gas such as a reactive gas (that is, one of the process gases)is exhausted from the process chamber 201 through the gas exhaust port235. An upstream end of a gas exhaust pipe 231 is connected to the lowervessel 211 so as to communicate with the gas exhaust port 235. An APC(Automatic Pressure Controller) valve 242 serving as a pressurecontroller (pressure adjusting mechanism), a valve 243 serving as anopening/closing valve and a vacuum pump 246 serving as a vacuum exhaustdevice are provided at the gas exhaust pipe 231 in order from anupstream side to a downstream side of the gas exhaust pipe 231.

An exhaust part (also referred to as an “exhaust system”) is constitutedmainly by the gas exhaust pipe 231, the APC valve 242 and the valve 243.The exhaust part may further include the vacuum pump 246.

Plasma Generator

The resonance coil 212 of a helical shape is provided so as to surroundthe process chamber 201 around an outer peripheral portion of theprocess chamber 201, that is, around an outer portion of a side wall ofthe upper vessel 210. The resonance coil 212 includes a resonance coil212 a serving as a first electrode and a resonance coil 212 b serving asa second electrode. A conductor constituting the resonance coil 212 aand a conductor constituting the resonance coil 212 b are alternatelyprovided in a vertical direction. The resonance coil 212 a may also bereferred to as a “first resonance coil”, and the resonance coil 212 bmay also be referred to as a “second resonance coil”. The conductorconstituting the resonance coil 212 a may also be referred to as a“first conductor”, and the conductor constituting the resonance coil 212b may also be referred to as a “second conductor”.

The resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b are arranged suchthat a center axis a in a radial direction of the resonance coil 212 adoes not overlap with a center axis β in a radial direction of theresonance coil 212 b. Thereby, a donut-shaped induction plasma 293(described later) generated by the resonance coil 212 a and adonut-shaped induction plasma 296 (described later) generated by theresonance coil 212 b are displaced with each other in the radialdirection. Therefore, it is possible to expand a plasma generationregion. The details will be described later.

The central axis a is arranged at a position that does not overlap witha horizontal center position of the substrate placing surface 217 a.Similarly, the central axis β is arranged at a position that does notoverlap with the horizontal center position of the substrate placingsurface 217 a.

An RF (radio frequency) sensor 272, a high frequency power supply 273and a matching device 274 configured to match an impedance or an outputfrequency of the high frequency power supply 273 are connected to theresonance coil 212 a.

The high frequency power supply 273 is configured to supply a highfrequency power (also referred to as an “RF power”) to the resonancecoil 212 a. The RF sensor 272 is provided at an output side of the highfrequency power supply 273. The RF sensor 272 monitors information of atraveling wave or a reflected wave of the supplied high frequency power.The power of the reflected wave monitored by the RF sensor 272 is inputto the matching device 274. The matching device 274 is configured tocontrol the impedance of the high frequency power supply 273 or theoutput frequency of the high frequency power so as to minimize thereflected wave based on the information on the reflected wave input fromthe RF sensor 272.

The high frequency power supply 273 includes a power supply controller(not shown) and an amplifier (not shown). The power supply controllermay also be referred to as a “control circuit”, and the amplifier mayalso be referred to as an “output circuit”. The power supply controllerincludes a high frequency oscillation circuit (not shown) and apreamplifier (not shown) in order to adjust an oscillation frequency andan output. The amplifier amplifies the output to a predetermined outputlevel. The power supply controller controls the amplifier based onoutput conditions relating to the frequency and the power, which are setin advance through an operation panel (not shown), and the amplifiersupplies a constant high frequency power to the resonance coil 212 a viaa transmission line.

The high frequency power supply 273, the matching device 274 and the RFsensor 272 may be collectively referred to as a “high frequency powersupply part” 271. The high frequency power supply part 271 may also bereferred to as a high frequency power supply system 271. One of the highfrequency power supply 273, the matching device 274 and the RF sensor272 or a combination thereof may be individually or collectivelyreferred to as the high frequency power supply part 271. The highfrequency power supply part 271 may also be referred to as a first highfrequency power supply part 271.

An RF (radio frequency) sensor 282, a high frequency power supply 283and a matching device 284 configured to match an impedance or an outputfrequency of the high frequency power supply 283 are connected to theresonance coil 212 b.

The high frequency power supply 283 is configured to supply a highfrequency power (also referred to as an “RF power”) to the resonancecoil 212 b. The RF sensor 282 is provided at an output side of the highfrequency power supply 283. The RF sensor 282 monitors information of atraveling wave or a reflected wave of the supplied high frequency power.The power of the reflected wave monitored by the RF sensor 282 is inputto the matching device 284. The matching device 284 is configured tocontrol the impedance of the high frequency power supply 283 or theoutput frequency of the high frequency power so as to minimize thereflected wave based on the information on the reflected wave input fromthe RF sensor 282.

The high frequency power supply 283 includes a power supply controller(not shown) and an amplifier (not shown). The power supply controllermay also be referred to as a “control circuit”, and the amplifier mayalso be referred to as an “output circuit”. The power supply controllerincludes a high frequency oscillation circuit (not shown) and apreamplifier (not shown) in order to adjust an oscillation frequency andan output. The amplifier amplifies the output to a predetermined outputlevel. The power supply controller controls the amplifier based onoutput conditions relating to the frequency and the power, which are setin advance through an operation panel (not shown), and the amplifiersupplies a constant high frequency power to the resonance coil 212 b viaa transmission line.

The high frequency power supply 283, the matching device 284 and the RFsensor 282 may be collectively referred to as a “high frequency powersupply part” 281. The high frequency power supply part 281 may also bereferred to as a high frequency power supply system 281. One of the highfrequency power supply 283, the matching device 284 and the RF sensor282 or a combination thereof may be individually or collectivelyreferred to as the high frequency power supply part 281. The highfrequency power supply part 281 may also be referred to as a second highfrequency power supply part 281. The first high frequency power supplypart 271 and the second high frequency power supply part 281 may becollectively referred to as a “high frequency power supply part” or a“high frequency power supply system”.

A winding diameter, a winding pitch and the number of winding turns ofeach of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b are setsuch that each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 bresonates in a full-wavelength mode to form a standing wave of apredetermined wavelength. That is, an electrical length of the resonancecoil 212 a is set to an integral multiple of a wavelength of apredetermined frequency of the high frequency power supplied from thehigh frequency power supply part 271. For example, the electrical lengthof the resonance coil 212 a is one or two times the wavelength. Anelectrical length of the resonance coil 212 b is set to an integralmultiple of a wavelength of a predetermined frequency of the highfrequency power supplied from the high frequency power supply part 281.For example, the electrical length of the resonance coil 212 b is one ortwo times the wavelength.

Specifically, considering the conditions such as the power to beapplied, a strength of a magnetic field to be generated and shapes ofthe substrate processing apparatus 100 to be applied, each of theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b having an effectivecross-section of 50 mm2 to 300 mm2 and a diameter of 200 mm to 500 mm iswound, for example, twice to 60 times around an outer circumferentialside of the process chamber 201 defining the plasma generation space 201a such that the magnetic field of about 0.01 Gauss to about 10 Gauss canbe generated by the high frequency power having a frequency of 800 kHzto 50 MHz and a power of 0.5 KW to 5 KW.

For example, when the predetermined frequency is 13.56 MHz, thewavelength is about 22 meters. When the predetermined frequency is 27.12MHz, the wavelength is about 11 meters. Preferably, the electricallength of each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 bis set equal to the wavelength. According to the embodiments, thepredetermined frequency is set to 27.12 MHz, and the electrical lengthof each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b is setequal to the wavelength (for example, about 11 meters).

The resonance coil 212 a is provided such that the winding pitch of theresonance coil 212 a is, for example, at equal intervals of 24.5 mm. Thewinding diameter (diameter) of the resonance coil 212 a is set to belarger than the diameter of the substrate 200. According to theembodiments, the diameter of the substrate 200 is set to 300 mm, and thewinding diameter of the resonance coil 212 a is set to 500 mm, which islarger than the diameter of the substrate 200.

The resonance coil 212 b is provided such that the winding pitch of theresonance coil 212 b is, for example, at equal intervals of 24.5 mm. Thewinding diameter (diameter) of the resonance coil 212 b is set to belarger than the diameter of the substrate 200. According to theembodiments, the diameter of the substrate 200 is set to 300 mm, and thewinding diameter of the resonance coil 212 b is set to 500 mm, which islarger than the diameter of the substrate 200.

For example, a copper pipe, a copper thin plate, an aluminum pipe, analuminum thin plate, a material obtained by depositing copper oraluminum on a polymer belt may be used as a material constituting theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b. The resonance coil212 (that is, each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil212 b) is made of an insulating material of a plate shape.

Both ends of each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212b are electrically grounded. However, at least one end of each of theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b may be grounded viamovable taps 213 (that is, a movable tap 213 a and a movable tap 213 b)in order to fine—tune an electrical length of each of the resonance coil212 a and the resonance coil 212 b when the substrate processingapparatus 100 is initially installed or when the processing conditionsof the substrate processing apparatus 100 are changed. A referencenumeral 214 in FIG. 1 indicates fixed grounds of the other end of theresonance coil 212. That is, a reference numeral 214 a in FIG. 1indicates a fixed ground of the other end of the resonance coil 212 aand a reference numeral 214 b in FIG. 1 indicates a fixed ground of theother end of the resonance coil 212 b. In addition, power feeding parts(not shown) are provided between the grounded ends of the resonance coil212 a and the resonance coil 212 b. The power feeding parts areconstituted by movable taps 215 (that is, a movable tap 215 a and amovable tap 215 b) which will be described later.

A position of the movable tap 213 a may be adjusted in order for theresonance characteristics of the resonance coil 212 a to becomeapproximately same as those of the high frequency power supply 273. Inorder to fine—tune an impedance of the resonance coil 212 a when thesubstrate processing apparatus 100 is initially installed or when theprocessing conditions of the substrate processing apparatus 100 arechanged, the movable tap 215 a is provided between the grounded ends ofthe resonance coil 212 a. The power feeding part for the resonance coil212 a is constituted by the movable tap 215 a.

A position of the movable tap 213 b may be changed in order for theresonance characteristics of the resonance coil 212 b to becomeapproximately same as those of the high frequency power supply 283. Inorder to fine—tune an impedance of the resonance coil 212 b when thesubstrate processing apparatus 100 is initially installed or when theprocessing conditions of the substrate processing apparatus 100 arechanged, the movable tap 215 b is provided between the grounded ends ofthe resonance coil 212 b. The power feeding part for the resonance coil212 b is constituted by the movable tap 215 b.

Since each of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 bincludes a variable ground part (that is, the movable tap 213 a or themovable tap 213 b) and a variable power supply feeding part (that is,the power feeding part for the resonance coil 212 a or the power feedingpart for the resonance coil 212 b), it is possible to easily adjust aresonance frequency and a load impedance of the process chamber 201.

A waveform adjustment circuit (not shown) constituted by a resonancecoil (not shown) and a shield (not shown) is inserted into one end (orthe other end or both ends) of each of the resonance coil 212 a and theresonance coil 212 b so that the phase current and the opposite phasecurrent flow symmetrically with respect to each of electrical midpointsof the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b. The waveformadjustment circuit is configured to be open by setting each of theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b to an electricallydisconnected state or an electrically equivalent state. The ends of eachof the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b may benon-grounded by a choke series resistor, or may be DC-connected to afixed reference potential.

A shield plate 223 is provided to shield an electric field outside ofthe resonance coil 212 and to form a capacitive component (also referredto as a “C component”) of the resonance coil 212 necessary forconstructing a resonance circuit between the shield plate 223 and theresonance coil 212 a or the resonance coil 212 b. In general, the shieldplate 223 is made of a conductive material such as an aluminum alloy,and is of a cylindrical shape. The shield plate 223 is disposed, forexample, about 5 mm to 150 mm apart from an outer periphery of each ofthe resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b. In general, theshield plate 223 is grounded so that a potential of the shield plate 223is equal to those of both ends of the resonance coil 212 a and theresonance coil 212 b. However, in order to accurately set the number ofresonances of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b, oneor both ends of the shield plate 223 may be configured so that a tapposition (or tap positions) of the shield plate 223 can be adjusted.Alternatively, in order to accurately set the number of the resonances,a trimming capacitance may be inserted between the shield plate 223 andeach of the resonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b.

A first plasma generator is constituted mainly by the resonance coil 212a and the high frequency power supply part 271. A second plasmagenerator is constituted mainly by the resonance coil 212 b and the highfrequency power supply part 281. The first plasma generator and thesecond plasma generator may be collectively referred to as a “plasmagenerator”.

Hereinafter, a principle of generating a plasma in the substrateprocessing apparatus 100 and the properties of the generated plasma willbe described with reference to FIG. 3 . Since the principle ofgenerating the plasma by each of the resonance coil 212 a and theresonance coil 212 b is substantially the same, the principle ofgenerating the plasma by the resonance coil 212 a will be describedhereafter as an example. When the following description applies to theprinciple of generating the plasma by the resonance coil 212 b, the RFsensor 272, the high frequency power supply 273 and the matching device274 are replaced by the RF sensor 282, the high frequency power supply283 and the matching device 284, respectively.

A plasma generation circuit constituted by the resonance coil 212 a isconfigured as an RLC parallel resonance circuit. When the wavelength ofthe high frequency power supplied from the high frequency power supply273 and the electrical length of the resonance coil 212 a are the same,the resonance condition of the resonance coil 212 a is that a reactancecomponent generated by a capacitance component or an inductive componentof the resonance coil 212 a is canceled out to become a pure resistance.However, when the plasma is generated in the plasma generation circuitdescribed above, an actual resonance frequency may fluctuate slightlydepending on conditions such as a variation (change) in a capacitivecoupling between a voltage portion of the resonance coil 212 a and theplasma, a variation in an inductive coupling between the plasmageneration space 201 a and the plasma and an excitation state of theplasma.

Therefore, according to the embodiments, in order to compensate for aresonance shift in the resonance coil 212 a when the plasma is generatedby adjusting the power supplied from the high frequency power supply273, the RF sensor 272 is configured to detect the power of thereflected wave from the resonance coil 212 a when the plasma isgenerated, and the matching device 274 is configured to correct theoutput of the high frequency power supply 273 based on the detectedpower of the reflected wave.

Specifically, the matching device 274 is configured to increase ordecrease the impedance or the output frequency of the high frequencypower supply 273 such that the power of the reflected wave is minimizedbased on the power of the reflected wave from the resonance coil 212 adetected by the RF sensor 272 when the plasma is generated. In case theimpedance is controlled by the matching device 274, the matching device274 is constituted by a variable capacitor control circuit (not shown)capable of correcting a preset impedance. In case the output frequencyof the high frequency power supply 273 is controlled by the matchingdevice 274, the matching device 274 is constituted by a frequencycontrol circuit (not shown) capable of correcting a preset oscillationfrequency of the high frequency power supply 273. The high frequencypower supply 273 and the matching device 274 may be provided integrallyas a single body.

According to the configuration related to the resonance coil 212 adescribed above, the high frequency power whose frequency is equal tothe actual resonance frequency of the resonance coil 212 a combined withthe plasma is supplied to the resonance coil 212 a (or the highfrequency power is supplied to match an actual impedance of theresonance coil 212 a combined with the plasma). Therefore, the standingwave in which the phase voltage thereof and the opposite phase voltagethereof are always canceled out by each other is generated in theresonance coil 212 a. When the wavelength of the high frequency powerand the electrical length of the resonance coil 212 a are the same, thehighest phase current is generated at an electric midpoint of theresonance coil 212 a (node with zero voltage). Therefore, a donut-shapedinduction plasma 224 is generated in the vicinity of the electricmidpoint of the resonance coil 212 a. The donut-shaped induction plasma224 is hardly capacitively coupled with walls of the process chamber 201or the substrate support 217. Similarly, a plasma 226 and a plasma 225are generated at both ends of the resonance coil 212 a according to thesame principle.

As a result of intensive research, the inventors of the presentapplication have discovered the following problems. One problem thatwill be described in detail with reference to FIG. 4 is that the plasmais affected by connecting the resonance coil 212 to the ground. Asdescribed above, the resonance coil 212 is connected to the ground viathe movable taps 213 (that is, the movable tap 213 a and the movable tap213 b) and the fixed grounds 214 (that is, the fixed ground 214 a andthe fixed ground 214 b). A high phase current is generated around themovable taps 213 and the fixed grounds 214. When viewed from above asshown in FIG. 4 , the high phase current is generated in the vicinity ofthe movable taps 213 and the fixed grounds 214 so that a plasma densityis increased at portions close to the movable taps 213 and the fixedgrounds 214. Then, on the substrate 200, the plasma density of portions200 a close to the movable taps 213 and the fixed grounds 214 increases,and the substrate processing on a surface of the substrate 200 may notbe uniformized.

Another problem is that the generated plasma is of a donut shape. Whenthe substrate 200 is disposed below the doughnut-shaped inductionplasma, a distribution of the plasma density supplied to the substrate200 may be different between a center portion of the substrate 200 andan outer peripheral portion of the substrate 200. That is, the plasmawith a high energy is supplied to the outer peripheral portion of thesubstrate 200 immediately below the donut-shaped induction plasma. Onthe contrary, since the plasma density is low at a center of thedoughnut-shaped induction plasma, the plasma with a low energy issupplied to the center portion of the substrate 200 immediately belowthe center of the doughnut-shaped induction plasma. Therefore, thesubstrate processing on the surface of the substrate 200 may bedifferent between the outer peripheral portion and the center portion ofthe substrate 200.

Therefore, according to the embodiments, in order to process the surfaceof the substrate 200 uniformly, the outer peripheral portion of thesubstrate 200 is always kept not being below the doughnut-shapedinduction plasma or not being close to the ground. Thereby, it ispossible to improve a uniformity of the substrate processing on thesurface of the substrate 200.

The details are described below. As described above, the plasma densitytends to be higher at a portion of the resonance coil 212 close to theground. According to the embodiments, the substrate support 217 isrotated. By rotating the substrate support 217, a relative position of aground portion such as the movable tap 213 a, the movable tap 213 b, thefixed ground 214 a and the fixed ground 214 b relative to a specificpoint on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate 200 keepschanging constantly. Therefore, it is possible to balance out theinfluence of the portion where the plasma density is high.

The substrate 200 may be revolve around the specific axis. By revolvingthe substrate 200, a relative position of the ground portion such as themovable tap 213 a, the movable tap 213 b, the fixed ground 214 a and thefixed ground 214 b relative to a specific point on the outer peripheralportion of the substrate 200 keeps changing constantly. Therefore, it ispossible to balance out the influence of the portion where the plasmadensity is high. In addition, below the doughnut-shaped inductionplasma, the substrate 200 moves so as to always face an arc portion ofthe donut shape of the doughnut-shaped induction plasma. Therefore, itis possible to disperse the influence of the donut-shaped inductionplasma. As a result, it is possible to balance out the influence of theplasma density.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 , two resonance coils whosecenter axes are displaced with each other may be used. For example, evenwhen the substrate 200 is disposed at a position 200-1 shown in FIG. 5 ,that is, at a horizontal center position of the substrate processingspace 201 b, the substrate 200 is affected by two plasmas (that is, thedonut-shaped induction plasma 293 generated by the resonance coil 212 aand the donut-shaped induction plasma 296 generated by the resonancecoil 212 b). Therefore, it is possible to balance out the influence ofthe portion where the plasma density is high. In such a case, it is morepreferable that the substrate 200 is rotated.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 , the substrate 200 may furtherrevolve around the specific axis while using the two resonance coils 212a and 212 b whose center axes are displaced with each other. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 5 , the substrate 200 may revolve to move topositions indicated by reference numerals 200-1, 200-2, and 200-3,respectively. By revolving the substrate 200, the substrate 200 passesbelow the donut-shaped induction plasma 293 generated by the resonancecoil 212 a (or below its center portion) or below the donut-shapedinduction plasma 296 generated by the resonance coil 212 b (or below itscenter portion). Therefore, it is possible to balance out the influenceof the portion where the plasma density is high. In such a case, it ismore preferable that the substrate 200 is rotated.

Controller

A controller 221 serving as a control device is configured to controlthe components described above such as the MFCs 252 a through 252 c, thevalves 253 a through 253 c, 243 and 254, the gate valve 244, the APCvalve 242, the vacuum pump 246, the high frequency power supplies 273and 283, the matching devices 274 and 284, and the rotating mechanism262, the revolving mechanism 263 and the elevating mechanism 265.

As shown in FIG. 6 , the controller 221 serving as a control device(also referred to as a “control mechanism”) is embodied by a computerincluding a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 221 a, a RAM (Random AccessMemory) 221 b, a memory device 221 c and an I/O port 221 d. The RAM 221b, the memory device 221 c and the I/O port 221 d may exchange data withthe CPU 221 a through an internal bus 221 e. For example, aninput/output device 222 such as a touch panel (not shown) and a display(not shown) is connected to the controller 221.

The memory device 221 c may be embodied by components such as a flashmemory and a HDD (Hard Disk Drive). Components such as a control programconfigured to control the operation of the substrate processingapparatus 100 and a process recipe in which information such as theorder and the conditions of the substrate processing described later isstored are readably stored in the memory device 221 c. The processrecipe is obtained by combining steps of the substrate processingdescribed later such that the controller 221 can execute the steps toacquire a predetermine result, and functions as a program. Hereinafter,the process recipe and the control program are collectively referred toas a “program”. In the present specification, the term “program” mayindicate only the process recipe, may indicate only the control program,or may indicate both of the process recipe and the control program. TheRAM 221 b functions as a memory area (work area) where a program or dataread by the CPU 221 a is temporarily stored.

The I/O port 221 d is electrically connected to the components describedabove such as the MFCs 252 a through 252 c, the valves 253 a through 253c, 243 and 254, the gate valve 244, the APC valve 242, the vacuum pump246, the high frequency power supplies 273 and 283, the matching devices274 and 284, and the rotating mechanism 262, the revolving mechanism 263and the elevating mechanism 265.

The CPU 221 a is configured to read and execute the control programstored in the memory device 221 c, and to read the process recipe storedin the memory device 221 c in accordance with an instruction such as anoperation command inputted via the input/output device 222. The CPU 221a is configured to control the operations of the components of thesubstrate processing apparatus 100 according to the process recipe.

The controller 221 may be embodied by preparing an external memorydevice 227 storing the program and by installing the program onto acomputer using the external memory device 227. For example, the externalmemory device 227 may include a magnetic tape, a magnetic disk such as aflexible disk and a hard disk, an optical disk such as a CD and a DVD, amagneto-optical disk such as an MO and a semiconductor memory such as aUSB memory and a memory card. The memory device 221 c or the externalmemory device 227 may be embodied by a non-transitory computer readablerecording medium. Hereafter, the memory device 221 c and the externalmemory device 227 may be individually or collectively referred to as arecording medium. In the present specification, the term “recordingmedium” may refer to only the memory device 221 c, may refer to only theexternal memory device 227 or may refer to both of the memory device 221c and the external memory device 227. The program may be provided to thecomputer without using the external memory device 227. For example, theprogram may be supplied to the computer using communication means suchas the Internet and a dedicated line.

(2) Substrate Processing

Subsequently, the substrate processing according to the embodiments willbe described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8 . FIG. 7 is a flowchartschematically illustrating the substrate processing according to theembodiments. FIG. 8 schematically illustrates operation states of thecomponents of the substrate processing apparatus 100 when the substrateprocessing is performed, in particular, when a plasma processing stepS250 is performed. For example, the substrate processing, which is apart of manufacturing processes of a semiconductor device such as aflash memory, is performed by the substrate processing apparatus 100described above. In the following description, the operations of thecomponents of the substrate processing apparatus 100 are controlled bythe controller 221.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9 , a trench (also referred to as a“groove”) 301 whose surface is at least made of a silicon layer isformed in advance on the surface of the substrate 200 to be processed bythe substrate processing according to the embodiments. In addition, thetrench 301 includes a concave-convex portion of a high aspect ratio.According to the embodiments, for example, the oxidation process servingas the substrate processing process using the plasma is performed tooxidize the silicon layer exposed on an inner wall of the trench 301.For example, the trench 301 is formed by forming a mask layer 302 havinga predetermined pattern on the substrate 200 and etching the surface ofthe substrate 200 to a predetermined depth.

Substrate Loading Step S210

A substrate loading step S210 will be described. First, the substrate200 is transferred (loaded) into the process chamber 201. Specifically,the substrate support 217 is lowered to a position for transferring thesubstrate 200 (also referred to as a “substrate transfer position”) bythe elevating mechanism 265.

Subsequently, the gate valve 244 is opened, and the substrate 200 isloaded into the process chamber 201 using the substrate transfermechanism (not shown) from a vacuum transfer chamber provided adjacentto the process chamber 201. The substrate 200 loaded into the processchamber 201 is then placed on the substrate placing surface 217 a.Thereafter, the substrate transfer mechanism is retracted out of theprocess chamber 201, and the gate valve 244 is closed to seal theprocess chamber 201. Thereafter, the substrate support 217 is furtherelevated by the elevating mechanism 265 until the substrate 200 is at aposition (also referred to as a “substrate processing position”) forprocessing the substrate 200.

Temperature Elevation and Vacuum Exhaust Step S220

A temperature elevation and vacuum exhaust step S220 will be described.In the temperature elevation and vacuum exhaust step S220, a temperatureof the substrate 200 loaded into the process chamber 201 is elevated.The heater 217 b embedded in the substrate support 217 is heated inadvance. By placing the substrate 200 on the substrate support 217 wherethe heater 217 b is embedded, for example, the substrate 200 is heatedto a predetermined temperature within a range from 150° C. to 850° C.According to the embodiments, for example, the predetermined temperatureof the substrate 200 is 600° C. While the substrate 200 is being heated,the vacuum pump 246 vacuum-exhausts an inner atmosphere of the processchamber 201 through the gas exhaust pipe 231 such that an inner pressureof the process chamber 201 is at a predetermined pressure. The vacuumpump 246 vacuum-exhausts the inner atmosphere of the process chamber 201at least until a substrate unloading step S270 described later iscompleted.

Rotation Start Step S230

A rotation start step S230 will be described. In the rotation start stepS230, the controller 221 controls the rotating part to start rotation orrevolution of the substrate support 217. When the substrate support 217is rotated, the controller 221 controls the rotating mechanism 262. Whenthe substrate support 217 revolves around the specific axis, thecontroller 221 controls the revolving mechanism 263. When the substratesupport 217 is rotated and revolves, the controller 221 controls therotating mechanism 262 and the revolving mechanism 263.

Reactive Gas Supply Step S240

A reactive gas supply step S240 will be described. When the rotation ofthe substrate support 217 is stabilized, the oxygen (O2) gas serving asthe oxygen-containing gas and the hydrogen (H2) gas serving as thehydrogen-containing gas are supplied into the process chamber 201 as thereactive gas. Specifically, the valves 253 a and 253 b are opened tosupply the O2 gas and the H2 gas into the process chamber 201 while theflow rates of the O2 gas and the H2 gas are adjusted by the MFCs 252 aand 252 b, respectively. In the reactive gas supply step S240, forexample, the flow rate of the O2 gas is set to a predetermined flow ratewithin a range from 20 sccm to 2,000 sccm, preferably from 20 sccm to1,000 sccm. In addition, for example, the flow rate of the H2 gas is setto a predetermined flow rate within a range from 20 sccm to 1,000 sccm,preferably from 20 sccm to 500 sccm. More preferably, a total flow rateof the O2 gas and the H2 gas is set to 1,000 sccm, and a ratio of theflow rate of the O2 gas to the flow rate of the H2 gas (that is, a flowrate ratio of the O2 gas to the H2 gas) is set to be equal to or greaterthan 950/50.

In the reactive gas supply step S240, the inner atmosphere of theprocess chamber 201 is exhausted by adjusting an opening degree of theAPC valve 242 such that the inner pressure of the process chamber 201 isat a predetermined pressure within a range from 1 Pa to 250 Pa,preferably from 50 Pa to 200 Pa, and more preferably about 150 Pa. TheO2 gas and the H2 gas are continuously supplied into the process chamber201 while appropriately exhausting the inner atmosphere of the processchamber 201 until the plasma processing step S250 described later iscompleted.

Plasma Processing Step S250

The plasma processing step S250 will be described. The plasma processingstep S250 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 8 . In FIG.8 , steps S1 through S4 correspond to the plasma processing step S250.In the step S1, when the supply of the reactive gas (that is, the O2 gasand the H2 gas) is stabilized, while supplying the reactive gascontinuously, the high frequency power supply part 271 supplies the highfrequency power to the resonance coil 212 a. In the step S1, the highfrequency power supply part 281 does not supply the high frequency powerto the resonance coil 212 b.

Specifically, when the inner pressure of the process chamber 201 isstabilized, the high frequency power is applied to the resonance coil212 a from the high frequency power supply 273 via the RF sensor 272.According to the embodiment, for example, the high frequency power of27.12 MHz is supplied from the high frequency power supply 273 to theresonance coil 212 a. For example, the high frequency power of 27.12 MHzsupplied to the resonance coil 212 a is a predetermined power within arange from 100 W to 5,000 W, preferably 100 W to 3,500 W, and morepreferably about 3,500 W. When the predetermined power is lower than 100W, it is difficult to stably generate a plasma discharge.

Thereby, a high frequency electric field is formed in the plasmageneration space 201 a to which the O2 gas and the H2 gas are supplied,and the donut-shaped induction plasma 293 of a high plasma density isexcited by the electric field. The O2 gas and the H2 gas are activatedby the excited plasma and dissociate. As a result, reactive species suchas oxygen radicals (also referred to as oxygen active species)containing oxygen atoms, oxygen ions, hydrogen radicals (also referredto as hydrogen active species) containing hydrogen atoms and hydrogenions may be generated.

The radicals generated by the induction plasma (that is, thedonut-shaped induction plasma 293) and non-accelerated ions such as theoxygen ions and the hydrogen ions are uniformly supplied into the groove301 of the substrate 200 placed on the substrate support 217 in thesubstrate processing space 201 b.

In the step S1, since the substrate 200 is rotated and/or revolves, arelative position of the ground portion (or the portion of thedonut-shaped induction plasma 293 where the plasma density is high)relative to a specific point on the substrate 200 keep changingconstantly. Therefore, it is possible to balance out the influence ofthe portion where the plasma density is high. It is also possible touniformly process the substrate 200.

The radicals and the ions supplied into the groove 301 of the substrate200 uniformly react with a bottom wall 301 a and a side wall 301 b overan entire surface of the substrate 200, and the silicon layer on thesurface of the groove 301 is modified into a silicon oxide layer 303 ofa good step coverage. Specifically, the bottom wall 301 a is modifiedinto an oxide layer 303 a, and the side wall 301 b is modified into anoxide layer 303 b. After a predetermined process time elapses (forexample, 10 seconds to 300 seconds), the step S3 is performed.

Subsequently, the step S2 will be described. In the step S2, whilesupplying the reactive gas continuously through the gas supply part 255,the high frequency power supply part 281 supplies the high frequencypower to the resonance coil 212 b. In the step S2, the supply of thehigh frequency power from the high frequency power supply part 271 tothe resonance coil 212 a is stopped.

Specifically, similar to the step S1, when the inner pressure of theprocess chamber 201 is stabilized, the high frequency power is appliedto the resonance coil 212 b from the high frequency power supply 283 viathe RF sensor 282. According to the embodiment, for example, the highfrequency power of 27.12 MHz is supplied from the high frequency powersupply 283 to the resonance coil 212 b. For example, the high frequencypower of 27.12 MHz is supplied to the resonance coil 212 b is apredetermined power within a range from 100 W to 5,000 W, preferably 100W to 3,500 W, and more preferably about 3,500 W. When the predeterminedpower is lower than 100 W, it is difficult to stably generate a plasmadischarge.

Thereby, a high frequency electric field is formed in the plasmageneration space 201 a to which the O2 gas and the H2 gas are supplied,and the donut-shaped induction plasma 296 of a high plasma density isexcited by the electric field. The O2 gas and the H2 gas are activatedby the excited plasma and dissociate. As a result, reactive species suchas oxygen radicals (also referred to as oxygen active species)containing oxygen atoms, oxygen ions, hydrogen radicals (also referredto as hydrogen active species) containing hydrogen atoms and hydrogenions may be generated. In addition, since the energy is added to theradicals generated in the step S1 by the electric field formed in thestep S2, it is possible to extend the lifetime of the radicals generatedin the step S1.

The radicals (and the ions) generated by the induction plasma (that is,the donut-shaped induction plasma 296) and the radicals (and the ions)generated in the step S1 and whose lifetime is extended by the electricfield formed in the step S2 are uniformly supplied into the groove 301of the substrate 200. The radicals (and the ions) supplied into thegroove 301 of the substrate 200 in the step S2 uniformly react with thebottom wall 301 a and the side wall 301 b without being deactivated, andthe silicon layer on the surface of the groove 301 is modified into thesilicon oxide layer 303 of a good step coverage.

Similar to the step S1, in the step S2, since the substrate 200 isrotated and/or revolves, a relative position of the ground portion (orthe portion of the donut-shaped induction plasma where the plasmadensity is high) relative to a specific point on the substrate 200 keepschanging constantly. Therefore, it is possible to balance out theinfluence of the portion where the plasma density is high. It is alsopossible to uniformly process the substrate 200.

After a predetermined process time elapses (for example, 10 seconds to300 seconds), the supply of the high frequency power from the highfrequency power supply part 281 to the resonance coil 212 b is stopped.In addition, the valves 253 a and 253 b are closed to stop the supply ofthe O2 gas and the H2 gas into the process chamber 201. Thereby, theplasma processing step S250 is completed.

The step S3 similar to the step S1 and the step S4 similar to the stepS2 may be further performed, or a cycle including the step S1, the stepS2, the step S3 and the step S4 may be repeatedly performed according todimensions such as the width or depth of the groove 301, the height ofthe upper vessel 210.

Vacuum Exhaust Step S260

After the supply of the O2 gas and the H2 gas is stopped, the inneratmosphere of the process chamber 201 is vacuum-exhausted through thegas exhaust pipe 231. As a result, the gas such as the O2 gas, the H2gas and an exhaust gas generated by the reaction between the O2 gas andthe H2 gas is exhausted to the outside of the process chamber 201.Thereafter, the opening degree of the APC valve 242 is adjusted suchthat the inner pressure of the process chamber 201 is adjusted to thesame pressure as that of the vacuum transfer chamber (not shown)provided adjacent to the process chamber 201. For example, the innerpressure of the process chamber 201 is adjusted to 100 Pa. The substrate200 is then unloaded to the vacuum transfer chamber in the substrateunloading step S270.

Substrate Unloading Step S270

After the inner pressure of the process chamber 201 reaches apredetermined pressure, the substrate support 217 is lowered to thesubstrate transfer position. Then, the gate valve 244 is opened and thesubstrate 200 is unloaded from the process chamber 201 to the outside ofthe process chamber 201 by using the substrate transfer mechanism (notshown). Then, the substrate 200 may be transferred to the vacuumtransfer chamber. Thereby, the substrate processing according to theembodiments is completed.

While the embodiments described above are mainly described by way of anexample in which the O2 gas and the H2 gas are excited by the plasma andsupplied to the substrate 200 to process the substrate 200 by theplasma, the embodiments are not limited thereto. For example, the N2 gasmay be supplied into the process chamber 201 instead the O2 gas, and theN2 gas and the H2 gas may be excited by the plasma to perform thenitridation process on the substrate 200. In such a case, the substrateprocessing apparatus 100 including the nitrogen-containing gas supplysystem described above instead of the oxygen-containing gas supplysystem described above may be used to perform the nitridation process.

While the embodiments described above are mainly described by way of anexample in which two high frequency power supply parts (that is, thehigh frequency power supply part 271 and the high frequency power supplypart 281) are used, the embodiments are not limited thereto. Forexample, as long as the high frequency power supplied to each of theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b does not overlap witheach other, one high frequency power supply part may be connected to theresonance coil 212 a and the resonance coil 212 b via a switch (notshown). In such a case, in the step S1, the resonance coil 212 a isconnected to the one high frequency power supply part described above,and in the step S2, the switch is switched to connect the resonance coil212 b to the one high frequency power supply part described above.

While the embodiments described above are mainly described by way of anexample in which two resonance coils (that is, the resonance coil 212 aand the resonance coil 212 b) are used, the embodiments are not limitedthereto. For example, three or more resonance coils may be used.

Other Embodiments

While the embodiments described above are mainly described by way of anexample in which the plasma is used to perform the process such as theoxidation process and the nitridation process on the surface of thesubstrate, the above-described technique is not limited thereto. Forexample, the above-described technique may also be applied to otherprocesses using the plasma to process the substrate. For example, theabove-described technique may be applied to other processes using theplasma such as a modification process (or a doping process) on a filmformed on the surface of the substrate, a reduction process of an oxidefilm, an etching process of the film, an ashing process of a photoresistand a film-forming process.

According to some embodiments in the present disclosure, it is possibleto uniformly process a surface of a substrate even when an inductivecoupling type substrate processing apparatus is used to process thesubstrate.

What is claimed is:
 1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: aprocess chamber in which a substrate is processed; a gas supply partconfigured to supply a gas into the process chamber; a plasma generatorconfigured to generate a plasma in the process chamber when a highfrequency power is supplied to a resonance coil; and a substrate supporton which the substrate is placed.